


I'd Marry You With Paper Rings

by FayeHunter



Category: 5 Seconds of Summer (Band)
Genre: 5 times Calum proposes with fake rings and the 1 time it was real, M/M, it's a 5+1 fic, this is just soft and cute and them being in love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-14
Updated: 2021-01-14
Packaged: 2021-03-12 09:14:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,253
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28757919
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FayeHunter/pseuds/FayeHunter
Summary: Calum seems to be on a mission to propose to Luke with as many things as he can. Luke just wants it to be real.
Relationships: Luke Hemmings/Calum Hood
Comments: 4
Kudos: 23





	I'd Marry You With Paper Rings

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lifewasradical](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lifewasradical/gifts).



> [Amanda](https://lifewasradical.tumblr.com/) prompted me for "I made this for you" with Cake and then suggested the Paper Rings song by Taylor Swift and I sorta ran away with it as a 5+1 for all the things Calum could propose with that weren't real rings. Please enjoy reading this I forgot how fun Cake is. And big thanks to Amanda for always being my hype woman!

“Honey, I’m home,” Calum calls as he enters the house. Luke winces when he hears the front door slam, Duke starting to bark loudly at the noise. Petunia is unbothered by the noise, continuing to snore on the couch as Calum tries to shush Duke, making his way through the house to the kitchen. 

Luke glances up from where he’s been standing at the sink, cleaning up the dishes from his earlier attempt at making banana bread. Calum’s holding too many Target bags in his hands for the simple trip for groceries that he went on. Luke raises an eyebrow at Calum, giggling when Calum looks away bashfully from Luke’s eyes. Calum peeks over Luke’s shoulder before turning to look at the bread on the cooling rack.

“Ooo, did you make banana bread?” 

“Yes, just for you. You wouldn’t stop talking about it and we had bananas that were getting ready to turn anyway so I just used them,” Luke says, turning to Calum, leaning in for a kiss. Calum rolls his eyes, granting Luke a quick kiss on the lips before setting the Target bags down on the counter.

“Well then, I guess you don’t need the sweets I bought from Target,” Calum teases. Luke perks up, hurrying to dry his hands off to see what Calum’s bought. Luke starts rummaging around in the bags, pulling out snack packs of fruits and nuts, chips, dog treats, a little neon heart light he’s bought because it reminded him of Luke, and some fake succulents he’s bought as well. 

Calum pulls out two bags of chocolate he’s bought before he grins triumphantly, pulling a pack of cupcakes from another bag. They’re chocolate and vanilla, covered in pink and red frosting, clearly meant for Valentine’s Day. The thing that gets Luke though, is the little plastic rings adorning the cupcakes. They’re big and pink, heart shaped atop the cupcakes. Luke can see the front from here, pretty cursive that says things like  _ I Love You _ and  _ Be Mine. _ Luke giggles looking at them, charmed by the sweet, simple nature of them.

Calum grins, popping the lid of the container open, dropping dramatically to one knee and holding out a cupcake to Luke. Luke’s heart starts to pound a little, heart jumping into his throat at the idea of Calum asking Luke to marry him. 

“Hey Luke, will you  _ be mine _ ?” Calum giggles, as Luke takes the cupcake from him. Luke doesn’t want to admit that it disappoints him a little, knowing that Calum’s only teasing him. Luke tries to cover it up with a forced smile.

“Are you asking me to marry you with a cupcake ring Cal?” Luke asks, popping the ring off the cupcake and licking the frosting off. Calum laughs, pushing himself from his kneeling position, watching Luke put the ring onto his left ring finger as he peels the wrapping off the cupcake.

“Are you accepting?”

“I don’t think so. You’re a world famous musician. I’m holding out for a better ring,” Luke says airly, trying to cover up his racing heart at the idea that Calum might be asking him to get married for real. Calum hums, leaning down to pick Duke up in his arms, letting Duke lick his face excitedly as he pets him.

“You’re being a diva, Luke. Demanding a nicer ring.”

“I think I’m well within my rights to ask for a nicer ring than a plastic one from a cupcake. We’ve been together for five years. I demand nothing less than a diamond and a proposal of you waxing poetry about your love for me,” Luke teases, licking icing from the cupcake. Calum laughs, swiping some icing from the cupcake and bopping Luke’s nose with it. He goes cross eyed looking at it, trying to wipe his nose off.

“Diva. You just want to be told how much I love you.”

“Is that a crime?”

“It’ll go to your head and you’ll be even worse than you already are.”

Luke rolls his eyes, “See if I share my banana bread with you.”

“See if I share anymore of my cupcakes and rings with you,” Calum shoots back. He sets Duke down on the floor, leaning over to press a kiss to Luke’s cheek and starting to clean the groceries up. Luke doesn’t want to admit he’s a little sad at having only gotten a joking, fake proposal instead of a real one. 

***

Luke and Calum are on a mission to clean their house up. Neither of them got the clean genes in the band, but Luke’s trying to turn over a new leaf in the new year. He’s on a kick to deep clean their whole house, despite Calum’s protests for a relaxing Saturday. 

“The whole of not being on tour means that we get to relax,” Calum whines from the bedroom. Luke’s tasked him with going through their closet, pulling out things they don’t wear anymore so they can get rid of them. Luke’s in the bathroom, trying to scrub the tile in the shower. He knows he’s picked the more daunting task, scrubbing at it with cleaning powder and a sponge, but Luke’s anxiety has been acting up lately and the methodical, repetitive task is helping put the loop in his head at ease.

“The whole point of being on tour means we’re home now. Which means now we should actually enjoy the home we live in.”

“By cleaning?”

“It’ll help with the vibes.”

“I hate that you’ve said that. I hate even more that I understand what you mean,” Calum calls back. Luke laughs, burying his face into his elbow to muffle some of his laughter. It shouldn’t be as funny as it is. Maybe Luke’s high from the cleaning fumes.

“Oh my god Luke! Guess what I’ve just found,” Calum calls, giddy and laughing. Luke sits back, taking a rest on the soft carpet on the floor and turning around to see Calum rush into the bathroom. He’s holding a small black ring in his fingers, grinning widely, eyes crinkled at the corners. Luke squints, standing up and getting closer to Calum to take a look. Luke raises his eyebrows when he realizes what it is.

“Is that my old lip ring?” Luke asks in wonder as he looks at it. Calum laughs, delighted.

“It is! Good, can you believe I found this? It’s been five years since you’ve worn it at least.”

“I dropped the lip ring for you,” Luke says, grinning.

“I should have said no when you asked me out just for that. I only agreed because you looked sexy with a lip piercing and then you get rid of it a week later.”

“It just didn’t fit my vibe anymore.”

“Might look nice with it again.”

“Please, I’m an adult now. Maybe I’ll get a nose piercing instead. Or my cartilage.”

“Hmmm, you would look hot with a nose piercing. You have the right nose for it,” Calum says, reaching over to bop Luke on the tip of his nose. Luke giggles. 

“I’ll keep that in mind for your next birthday gift. Nose piercing.”

“Not your lip again?”

“Calum, if we’ve found a five year old lip ring, I think it’s a sign we need to clean the house more,” Luke says, rolling his eyes. Calum smiles mischievously.

“Luke Hemmings, with this lip ring, will you wed?” He teases, holding the ring out dramatically. Luke ignores the way his heart jackhammers at the sound of Calum proposing to him again. It’s silly and a joke and not real. Even if it thrills Luke to hear Calum say the words, to imagine what it would be like for the proposal to be real.

“Very funny Calum. Are you trying to make up for the plastic heart ring from last time?”

“Well, this one has more sentimental value. Although you did keep that heart ring, I remember,” Calum says. Luke blushes, glancing away. Luke thought he was doing a good job hiding the plastic ring from the cupcake in his nightstand. Clearly, Calum’s caught Luke anyway.

“I will not confirm nor deny the existence of such a ring,” Luke answers breezily, plucking the lip ring from Calum’s hand. Calum laughs, leaning in to kiss Luke gently.

“I’ll take that as a yes to both things,” Calum boosts, calling over his shoulder as he leaves the bathroom.

“I’m not agreeing to anything,” Luke answers. He looks at the ring in his hand. If he stores it in his pocket to add to the ring in his nightstand, well, no one but Luke has to know about that.

***

It’s too warm in the house today. The weather in LA is warming up and while the change is nice, Luke does not appreciate the sudden heat in the house. Luke’s taken to sitting outside in the pool, floating around on the pineapple shaped floatie he bought on a whim. It’s done nothing to cool him down, but it makes him feel nice at least. It’s more fun anyway than sitting out on the deck or sitting instead. 

Calum’s gone out to the store again, to buy more snacks and get away from Luke’s whining probably. Luke doesn’t mind either way, taking the time to float around, Petunia and Duke sitting on one of the deck chairs, sleeping soundly. Luke has on Taylor Swift’s album  _ Lover _ over the little portable speaker they have, feeling soft and warm in his chest today when he woke up to Calum curled into his side. They’d made breakfast together this morning, an excuse really to cuddle against each other in the kitchen, pressed close as they made waffles and coffee, kissing at every opportunity. It’s put Luke in a nice mood for the day, despite the heat and all, and when he’s in a good mood, he likes to put this album on. It makes him think of Calum, all soft pinks and blues, filled with love and warmth and promises of forever.

“Hey, lover boy,” Calum calls from the sliding door leading from the living room to the deck. Luke startles, jumping slightly and overturning the float into the water. Luke resurfaces, spitting out water and pouting as Calum laughs. Calum approaches the edge of the pool, jumping out of the way when Luke tries to splash him. Luke wades over to where Calum’s standing, shopping bag hanging from two fingers, grinning. He leans down, meeting Luke halfway as Luke stands on his tiptoes to press a kiss to Calum’s lips.

“You made me lose my sunglasses.”

“Aw come on now, you’re an Aussie. You can swim for them and everything,” Calum says, kicking off his sandals and putting the bag on the ground, so he can roll the legs of his pants up. Luke sighs heavily, pretending to be put out as he drives down in the pool to grab his sunglasses from where they’re sitting on the floor of the pool. He grabs them, coming up for air and shaking his hair out. Calum cries in mock upset as the water drops hit him, shielding his face from the water. Luke perks up when he notices the box of popsicles poking out of the bag, bright fruity flavored ones. Luke’s weak for them, something Calum clearly knows and is using to his advantage in the face of Luke’s whining about the heat. Calum laughs when he follows the track of Luke’s eyes, ripping the box open as Luke swims over.

“Dry your hands first,” Calum chides, holding out the beach towel resting by the side of the pool. Luke does so, making grabby hands for the popsicle once he’s dry, eagerly ripping open the white plastic, thrilled to find the orange flavored popsicle and licking at it. Calum laughs at Luke’s face, sucking on his own cherry popsicle.

“Thank you,” Luke mumbles around the popsicle in his mouth, words muffled. Calum giggles.

“You’re welcome sweetcheeks. Thought you deserved a treat with how much complaining you’ve been doing.”

Luke huffs, enjoying his popsicles, Taylor Swift filling the air. They finish their popsicles in comfortable silence, Luke biting at the stick when he’s done for something to do with his mouth.

“Oh!” Calum exclaims, startling Luke a little. Calum rummages around in the bag, pulling out a small bag and holding it out to Luke. Luke takes it from Calum, blushing when he realizes that it’s a ring pop.

“What is this Cal?”

“A ring pop. Remember those? I think this is blue raspberry flavored,” He says. Luke rips the foil open, pulling out the ring pop, blue lollipop and red plastic ring.

“You remembered?”

“That blue raspberry is your favorite flavor? Give me some credit as your boyfriend,” Calum jokes. Luke smiles.

“Thank you.”

“Wait!” Calum exclaims, holding his hand out for the ring.

“Come on Calum. You can’t be serious,” Luke groans. Calum continues to make grabby hands for the ring. Luke sighs, heavy and pretending to be put out. 

“You’re not going to give up, are you?”

“Nope. Better to just give it to me now and get it over it.”

Luke rolls his eyes, holding the ring gingerly in his fingers. Calum takes it from Luke, holding it out dramatically to him again.

“Luke. Love of my life. Darling. Sweetheart.”

“Does this have a point?”

“Rude. Here I am trying to propose to you and you just want to rush me along.”

“I want my ring pop before it melts in the sun with how long you’re taking.”

Calum sighs heavily, gesturing for Luke’s hand. Luke holds out his left hand, letting Calum slide the ring onto his ring finger.

“Will you marry me?”

“Hmmm, maybe. You’re getting closer to a yes, I will say that.”

“I’m going to dump you for Ashton if you don’t start appreciating my love.”

“Like Michael would let you get away with taking Ashton  _ and _ overlooking him as a replacement,” Luke says, rolling his eyes.

“Take this seriously Luke.”

“You take it seriously. You don’t know how to propose properly.”

Calum rolls his eyes, huffing, “You know, one day I’m going to propose for real and you’re not going to know what to do.”

“I’d like to see you try,” Luke fires back, tampering down on the flare in his chest at the idea of Calum proposing for real, glancing away as Taylor Swift sings about love in the background, heart fond as Calum kicks his legs in the water, smiling softly at Luke, Luke smiling back and squeezing Calum’s ankle.

***

Luke wasn’t expecting to spend date night a planetarium, but he doesn’t think he should be surprised. Luke and Calum have both been fascinated by the stars for years, the idea that no matter where they are, everyone is sharing the same sky. It used to bring them comfort back when Calum was in Rio on his own, separated from Luke and Michael, and later when the four of them were living in England alone for the first time in their lives, thinking about their parents. 

The sky isn’t as much of a safety net as it once was, but Luke still adores the night skies, the stars. He and Calum like to lay out on the deck at night, staring up at the stars and claiming that they can see whatever shapes people swear are out there. Calum keeps saying they should buy a telescope, but they’re both lazy and keep putting it off.

It led to their date tonight, Luke and Calum sitting in a planetarium, listening to the narrator in the theater tell them about the stars and what’s up in the night sky. Luke keeps grabbing Calum’s hand, squeezing it excitedly everytime they see something interesting on the screen. Calum’s smiling fondly at Luke, squeezing back whenever Luke does it.

The man moves on to talking about the planets now, working his from Jupiter to Saturn, giving off fun facts about the planets.

Calum leans over, whispering into Luke’s ear, “Hey, you know what Saturn has?”

“What?”

“Rings,” Calum says, raising his eyebrows and wiggling them. Luke groans, letting his head fall back against the seat.

“Not this again Calum.”

“Hey! It’s a ring,” Calum says, the people around them shushing Calum when he gets too loud. Calum sinks down in the seat, embarrassed slightly at it. A few moments pass before Calum turns to Luke again.

“It counts Luke.”

“It does not. You cannot propose to me without something physical.”

“Why not? It’s a ring.”

“I will not say yes to a proposal that does not come with a physical ring,” Luke says, turning back to the presentation as the narrator moves onto the next planet. Luke thinks that’s the end of it, Calum going quiet next to him. Luke glances next to him, chest warming as he looks at Calum, bathed in galaxy lights, staring up at the ceiling in wonder. Luke’s almost forgotten about the exchange until they’re in the gift shop later, poking around. Calum lets out a little whoop of excitement, turning to Luke and poking him.

“What?” Luke asks, turning to Calum, going cross eyed at the postcard that Calum’s waving in his face.

“Look! It’s a postcard of Saturn!”

“Okay?”

“It’s a physical form of rings! I can propose to you with this!” Calum crows. Luke sighs heavily, rolling his eyes.

“Calum it still does not count. It’s not an actual ring.”

“Please Luke? Will you marry me?”

“If I say yes, will you drop the argument for including Saturn’s rings?”

“Yes.”

“Then yes Calum. I accept your bogus proposal,” Luke says. Calum shrieks in happiness, leaning over to press a kiss to Luke’s lips and rushing over to the cash register to buy Luke’s proposal “ring.” Luke sighs, pretending to be put out when Calum hands the postcard to him in a dramatic swipe. If the postcard goes up on their fridge, well, only Luke and Calum have to know about it, Calum grinning knowing and Luke rolling his eyes the whole time, pretending to be annoyed, but instead feeling fond and loved.

***

Calum’s on a weird art kick. It’s unusual for him. Usually, when Calum’s feeling creative, he plays his bass or writes songs, walking around the house humming under his breath. Today though, Calum has hidden himself away in the studio with some art supplies. He squirreled it all in there this morning, hiding it all from Luke and making Luke promise that he won’t come and look before Calum is ready to show him. Calum had claimed it was a surprise, despite Luke’s whining about being left out. Luke’s feeling very uncreative this morning, spending the day on the couch, flipping around the TV still he gets sucked into a marathon of  _ Say Yes to the Dress. _

Luke’s lost track of time, hollering at the TV and alternating between arguing with the family’s who won’t let brides wear what they want and brides who have poor fashion taste (Luke’s been in Fashion Week, he should know a little about fashion). He doesn’t even realize Calum’s standing there until he hears him clear his throat from the doorway. Luke startles a little, turning to look at Calum. Calum crosses the room, coming to stand next to the couch. He’s holding both hands behind his back as he drops to one knee. Luke swallows, panicking filling his throat. Is this really when Calum’s going to propose? Luke knows his answer, but he isn’t ready to say yes. He needs time to process this. 

Calum takes his hands out from behind his back, holding something up, held gingerly between both fingers. Luke squints, leaning forward to take a look at it. 

“Cal?”

“Yeah honey?”

“What is this?”

“It’s a ring. I made this for you,” Calum says. He’s holding the paper ring out to Luke, face open and eager. 

“I think you’re supposed to give it to me,” Luke says. Calum grins even wider. He takes Luke’s offered left hand, holding it in his own as he slides the ring onto Luke’s ring finger. Luke admires the paper. It’s a soft pale pink, slips of paper interwoven to create a braided effect, ends all tucked into one another. Luke can’t tell where the paper starts or ends.

“Do you accept my proposal?” Calum says, tone light and teasing. Luke glances up, noticing the nervous, worried flicker in Calum’s eyes at Luke’s hesitation. Luke smiles softly, tugging Calum closer, pressing a soft kiss to his lips.

“Are you proposing for real or just practicing?”

“Will that change your answer?”

“Well, I don’t want to get my hopes up if this is all just a trial run,” Luke says, aiming for casual, coming off as nervous instead.

Calum hums, “Maybe this is your proposal. A paper ring and my love.” 

Luke hums, examining the ring, “Pink is my color.” 

Calum grins, “Well then, Luke Hemmings, do you accept my pseudo proposal?” 

Luke huffs, smacking Calum’s shoulder, “Just for that I’m saying no Calum.” 

“Oh come on. You said you would say yes.” 

“Not if you’re going to mock me,” Luke says, haughty and trying to cover up the hurt in his voice as he stands from the couch. Luke knows it’s just silly teasing, a game between the two of them, but his heart aches everytime he thinks Calum is really proposing to him, only to be let down yet again. Luke wants to know when the proposal is going to be real. Luke places this ring away with the cupcake ring and lip ring to hold a special place in his heart until Calum is ready. 

***

Luke wakes up, frowning when he realizes that the bed is empty next to him. A quick glance at the clock confirms that it’s only 8:00am, far too early for Calum to be up and out of bed. Frowning, Luke rolls over onto his back, sitting up and rubbing his eyes. He gets a bearing of his surroundings, can hear Calum banging around in the kitchen. Curious, Luke gets out of bed and starts to head down to the kitchen. 

Calum’s in there, humming along to the music he’s playing through his phone speakers. He’s dancing around the kitchen slightly, coffee heating up, waffles cooking. Luke clears his throat, startling Calum and causing him to turn around. 

“Morning sunshine,” Calum says, grinning at Like. He looks nervous, which confuses Luke. He’s never seen Calum with this much energy in the morning. 

“Morning love. You’re making breakfast?” 

“Yep. Almost done. You should take a seat,” Calum says, jittery. Cautiously, Luke makes his way over to the table and sits down. He watches Calum plate the waffles, dumping blueberries and strawberries onto the plate as well and carrying them both over. He puts one in front of Luke and goes back for the coffee. He pours two mugs, bringing them over as well. He puts them down on the table, smiling down at Luke. 

Luke smiles back, “Are you serious you’re okay? You seem nervous.” 

Instead of answering, Calum drops down to one knee. Luke’s heart stops. He doesn’t know if he can take another fake proposal. Calum pulls a small velvet box out of his pockets. Oh... _ oh.  _ Luke swallows. This is real, this is happening. Calum’s hands are shaking as he opens the box. It’s a beautiful ring, light blue stone set in a gold band. 

“Oh Calum. It’s beautiful,” Luke whispers. 

“Don’t say anything. I have a whole speech planned and you can’t distract me,” Calum says. Luke zips his lips, earning a nervous laugh from Calum. 

“Luke, I’ve known you for so long. It’s hard to put a number on it because it feels like forever. You’re a part of my days, my life, my being. Everything you do just puts me more and more in awe of you. You’re a bright, sunny, wonderful part of my day. I don’t know what I would do without you. When I picture the future, I picture you in it. Growing older, getting more dogs, maybe a kid. I always picture you. Our lives are ever changing, but you are the one constant in my life. I love you so much. Luke Robert Hemmings, will you marry me?” Calum asks, holding the ring box up. Luke whispers out a barely audible yes, nodding fervently. Calum’s face breaks out into a wide grin, pulling the ring from the box and sliding it onto Luke’s finger with shaking hands. 

Luke thinks he might be crying as he pulls Calum in for a kiss, but it doesn’t seem to matter, Calum’s face equally wet with tears as they kiss, ring band digging into Calum’s cheek. 

“See, I told you I had a good plan. You just had to wait,” Calum says when they pull apart. Luke rolls his eyes, pulling Calum down onto his lap. 

“Sap,” Luke says fondly, burying his face into Calum’s neck. Calum’s smile is in his voice as he plays with Luke’s curls. 

“ Got you to say yes.” 

“Fine fine, maybe all your other proposals were good prep,” Luke says, rolling his eyes when Calum laughs. It doesn’t matter either way. No matter how many ways Calum’s proposed to him, this one way is Luke’s favorite. It’s sentimental and true and real. Luke is Calum’s and Calum’s is Luke’s. Forever and ever now. All the other parts are just fluff as long as they have each other. 

  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Come find me on [tumblr!](https://pixiegrl.tumblr.com/) Talk to me about Stardust, 5sos, Luke Hemmings, or you can sidetrack me by giving me more fic ideas!


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